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All-Star DC
All Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder is a American comic book series written by Frank Miller and penciled by Jim Lee. It was published by DC Comics, with a sporadic schedule, between 2005 and 2008. The series is currently on hiatus. This was the first series to be launched in 2005 under DC's All Star imprint. These series are helmed by renowned writers and artists in the American comic book industry and attempt to retell some of the history of prominent DC Universe characters, but outside of DC Universe continuity, and not be restricted by it, in order to appeal to new and returning readers. Every series under the All Star imprint is set in its own continuity and separate universes. continuity. The first issue of All Star Batman and Robin was the highest-selling comic book of 2005, selling more copies than the first issues of the crossover events of both DC Comics (Infinite Crisis #1) and Marvel Comics (House of M #1). Story The first two issues of the series focuses on the murder of Dick Grayson's parents and the immediate aftermath. The story is seen from a variety of points of view, including Dick Grayson, Batman, and reporter Vicki Vale. In a retelling of the origin of Batman's sidekick, Robin: Bruce Wayne and Vicki Vale are at the circus watching "The Flying Graysons," an acrobat family consisting of twelve-year-old Dick Grayson and his parents. When Grayson's parents are shot to death by a hit man, he is escorted from the scene by several cops of the Gotham City Police Department in a threatening manner. Vicki and Alfred Pennyworth chase after them. Batman begins searching for the killer and then rescues Dick Grayson from the police, telling him that he has been drafted into a war. More police chase after the Batmobile with orders to kill Batman, during which Vicki is seriously injured. Dick is frightened by Batman's violently ramming the police vehicles during the chase. When Dick begins to cry, Batman smacks him, though he then catches himself, questioning these actions. He tells Dick he will find his parents' killer, and tells him not to trust the Gotham police. Arriving in the Batcave, Batman drops Dick off, leaving him to his own devices. When Dick asks what he can eat Batman coldly tells Dick to eat the cave's vermin if he is hungry. Alfred informs Batman that Vicki is in critical condition, but knows a doctor in Paris who might be able to save her. Alfred contacts Superman, who is enraged to learn of Batman's kidnapping of Dick. Alfred reveals that Batman knows Superman's secret identity, thus blackmailing Superman into bringing the doctor from Paris to Gotham. Batman and Alfred get into a heated argument over Alfred's providing Dick with clean clothes, a blanket and food, and when Batman manhandles Dick, Alfred orders him to cease, invoking a bitter reaction from Batman. The Justice League, consisting of Superman, Wonder Woman, Plastic Man and Green Lantern, discusses Batman. Green Lantern and Plastic Man suggest talking to or inviting him into the League, Superman wants to arrest him and Wonder Woman wants to kill him. The latter two heroes argue rather heatedly over the issue, but are implied to have romantic feelings for each other and possibly even a relationship. The argument ends in a kiss, and Wonder Woman leaves in a huff, agreeing to wait before acting on her own to stop Batman. The third issue features Black Canary, portrayed as violent and wild, with an as-yet-unknown interest in locating Batman. Superman, appearing as well, becomes enraged after reading the Daily Planet and learning Batman has kidnapped Dick Grayson. Batman comes to the aid of Black Canary, who is fighting a group of thugs, including "Jocko-Boy" Vanzetti, who killed Dick's parents. After defeating the criminals, the two crimefighters share a romantic interlude, before Batman takes Canary home, with Vanzetti bound and gagged in the Batmobile's trunk. Batman and Dick manage to extract from Jocko-Boy the name of the person who hired him: the Joker. Issue four features Vicki Vale in critical condition at a hospital, very near death. Batman (now sporting beard growth) introduces Dick Grayson to the Batcave. He's unimpressed. Hungry, Dick Grayson asks for something to eat. Batman instructs Dick Grayson to hunt for the vermin that infest the cave in order to survive. Alfred informs Batman that Vicki Vale is dying. Batman knows of a doctor in Paris who may be able to save her. He reveals to Superman, via Alfred, that he knows Clark Kent is Superman, and blackmails him into racing over to Paris to fetch him. Dick Grayson refuses to be reduced to eating rats to survive, and is fed a cheeseburger (with fries) by Alfred. Alfred and Batman get into an argument, in which Batman grabs him by the scruff of his neck. Alfred boldly states to his employer, "Sir, I am your butler. I am your aide. I am your medic. I am not, however, your slave. Unhand me." The issue concludes with Batman doing so, and thinking that "this little brat is going to ruin everything." Dick wants to fight crime with Batman, but Batman says he needs a secret identity first. Batman leaves the cave when he sees Green Lantern's symbol in the sky. After dumping Jocko-Boy in a river, Batman meets Green Lantern, but refuses to speak to him. Dick creates a costume, basing it on Robin Hood. Joker goes to see Catwoman to tell her he has an idea in mind for Batman. Batman returns to the cave, and when Dick tells him his name is Hood, Batman points out that an opponent can easily pull the hood down over his head. Batman tells him to lose the hood and names him Robin. Dick receives a new costume made by Alfred. Together they confront the Green Lantern. Robin paints the entire room yellow and he covers himself and Batman in yellow. They talk to Jordan, who proceeds to beat on Batman while being openly mocked by Batman. Robin then steals Green Lantern's ring causing him to chase after Robin. Robin turns on Green Lantern and attacks him, almost killing him before Batman saves his life. Batman then takes Robin to his parents graves, where they share a moment of mutual grief. The heroes then go underground at the request of Catwoman who is severely injured. Jim Gordon is shown trying to solve a crime when he learns his wife has been in a accident. At the same time his daughter dressed as Batgirl is fighting crime. Black Canary robs a group of snuff film makers and proceed to set them on fire. Batgirl is later arrested and Jim is shown to be deeply depressed when he calls his former lover Sarah at the request of his daughter. Continuity The All Star titles are self-contained story arcs existing outside of official DC Comics continuity. Despite sharing a label with Grant Morrison's All Star Superman, All Star Batman and Robin exists in its own continuity unrelated to other books in the All Star imprint. Frank Miller has also stated that All Star Batman and Robin does exist in the same continuity as the other storylines in his "Dark Knight Universe". This consists of Miller's Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, its sequel Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again, Batman: Year One, the upcoming Holy Terror, Batman!, and the Frank Miller / Todd McFarlane collaboration on Spawn/Batman. Of these, only Year One is considered canonical to the mainstream DC Universe.(However, recent reports state that Holy Terror, Batman! is no longer going to be published by DC, at the very least not with Batman being a character in the book.) In 2007, Frank Miller's "Dark Knight Universe" was officially designated as Earth-31 within the new DC Comics Multiverse comprised of 52 alternate universes. Morrison himself has admitted to being uncertain whether his Superman and the version featured in All Star Batman and Robin are the same due to the dramatic time differences between the two books: "I don’t know if it would have worked. For me, I guess I do see it all taking place in the same world even though they seem like very different characters. Frank Miller is doing Batman at the beginning of his career and I am doing Superman at the very end of his life, in the years beyond All Star Batman. But it could be the same character as far as I am concerned. That’s where they may have ended up." The series appears to be in different continuity to All-Star Superman. For instance, in All-Star Superman#2 Superman mentions Robin when he is talking to Lois in the Fortress of Solitude, whereas Robin does not yet exist in this series. Also, issue #4 of Batman & Robin shows Superman running on water and leaping 1/8th of a mile, in All-Star Superman, Superman is shown as being able to fly. Batman mentions knowledge of Superman's secret identity but Superman knows not of Batman's, whereas in All-Star Superman, Superman mentions the time Batman dresses up as Clark, meaning he knows Batman's identity. The All-Star titles are self-contained, despite sharing a label. Morrison's comic aims for a "Silver Age Old School" Superman with a modern twist. Miller's Batman comic aims for his own well known style beats. Collected editions The series is being collected into individual volumes: *''All Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder, Volume 1'' (collects issues 1-9, Released June 25, 2008, ISBN 1401216811) Covers The first issue launched with four different covers. three of them were illustrated by Jim Lee—one sporting Batman, the other Robin and one a sketch variant of Batman. Frank Miller illustrated the fourth. Since then, Frank Miller has drawn variant covers for the series. With the exception of issue #2, the Miller covers are sold in 1:10 ratios. For issue #8 and #9, the variant covers were being drawn by Neal Adams. The cover for #10 was drawn by Frank Quitely. Fan reaction The over-the-top dialog has polarized the fan base. Some find the speech-patterns totally repetitive and unrealistic while others find it refreshing compared to the mainstream version of Batman. Others still argue that Batman is speaking out of character in verbally assaulting a 12 year old, though his comments can be attributed to his attempts to keep Dick angry, rather than go into shock concerning his current situation. *Dick Grayson: So what do you call this thing, anyway? : Batman: The Batmobile. : Dick Grayson: That is so totally queer. : Batman: Shut up. *Dick Grayson: Who the hell are you anyway, giving out orders like this? : Batman: What are you, dense? Are you retarded or something? Who the hell do you think I am? I'm the goddamn Batman. This, however, does not explain other instances of out-of-character dialogue, including referring to Dick Grayson as a "Brat" in his own thoughts, threatening Alfred and being hostile in his views to Superman. All in all it seems as if Miller's batman is angrier and ruder. Other fans have taken issue with not just the excessive use of fanservice http://community.livejournal.com/scans_daily/1289100.html, but also what is perceived as the unintentional self-parody of Frank Miller. http://www.stomptokyo.com/scott/blog/C4482399/E1059027263/ Aside from the over-the-top dialogue, one major complaint coming from fans is the slow pace at which the story is moving. The most obvious example of this being that it has taken four issues to have Batman and Dick Grayson travel from the circus to the Batcave, though very little has been accomplished in terms of story development. Critics Initially released with great fanfare and to much anticipation, All Star Batman has consistently received derision from critics. Nearly all complaints about the series are directed at Frank Miller's writing, specifically his non-traditional interpretation of the main character. In the series to date, Batman is consistently violent and cruel, excited by his own sadism towards criminals, musing over the injuries he has inflicted. His abuse extends even towards innocents: he verbally and physically abuses Dick Grayson in an attempt to prevent him from grieving over his parent's deaths, even slapping the boy in the face. Immediately following this, Batman appears to kill a group of corrupt police officers by landing the Batmobile on top of a pursuing squad car. Later, at the Batcave, he withholds food from Grayson and suggests that the boy catch rats and eat them if he is hungry. Perhaps the book's single most infamous moment occurred when Miller's gritty style of dialogue led the title character to introduce himself to Grayson as "the Goddamn Batman." The phrase went on to become something of a meme among comic book fans for its perceived comedic value, and has since its sudden fame, been repeated at least once in nearly every subsequent issue of the comic. According to reviewer Brett Weiss, the line "drew derision from fans and critics alike". Reviewer Peter Sanderson of IGN Comics, while acknowledging that the series is "widely reviled", and opining that DC Comics' publicity for the series was "misleading", suggested that Batman's treatment of Grayson was comparable to a drill sergeant's treatment of a new recruit, but questioned whether this would merely traumatize Grayson further. He nonetheless claimed to be "fascinated" with how this behavior reveals Batman's personality, likening his rough treatment of Grayson to the psychologically frightening experience to which V subjected Evey in V for Vendetta. Sanderson also pointed out that Miller's view of All Star Batman and Robin as a spin-off of his graphic novels Batman: The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: The Dark Knight Strikes Again suggests that the darker, grittier take on Batman and his more dysfunctional relationship with Robin make sense when taken in context. This viewpoint also suggests that Batman's rough treatment of Dick Grayson reveals a lot about the inner workings of Batman's personality. Reviewer Brett Weiss, in the Comics Buyers Guide #1636 (December 2007), gave the first issue of the series high marks for being interesting and edgy, but opined that by issue #6, the series became "a bad joke", citing the series' "absurdly bad, faux-noir dialogue", and presenting Batman "as a psychopath, as opposed to merely dark and disturbed." Weiss praised Jim Lee's art as "gorgeous", but opined that it was wasted on the title, which he saw as "something that seems to be bad on purpose". Comics journalist Cliff Biggers, in Comic Shop News #1064 (November 7, 2007), called the series "one of the biggest train wrecks in comics history", expressing amazement at how he feels Frank Miller disregarded every aspect of Batman's character in order to tell "a Sin City story in bat-garb." Reviewing issue #7, Biggers excoriated the sequence with Batman and Black Canary as "farcical" and "Tarantinoesque", arguing that Miller's work could not get worse. Biggers gave the issue a "D", explaining that it would be an "F" if not for Jim Lee's art, and suggested that to salvage the work, DC should reprint the book with blank word balloons and let readers submit their own scripts. Reviewing the first three issues of the series, William Gatevackes of PopMatters said that "Lee's art is beautiful but cannot make up for the writing or the holes in the storytelling." Gatevackes criticized what he perceived to be a lack of plot, saying that "it seems like is expanding four issues of story over 20 issues of the book." Gatevackes compared All Star Batman and Robin unfavorably to Miller's previous work, saying: "One is puzzled as to what happened to the Frank Miller who gained his fame on Daredevil, Ronin, and Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. Can he come back? Because until he does, All Star Batman and Robin should be avoided at all costs." Iann Robinson, writing for Crave Online, wrote an essay critical of All Star Batman and Robin, calling it "a comic series that just spirals deeper and deeper into the abyss of unreadable. I understand Miller's need to re-invent, but this is just badly done and in poor taste." Robinson commented that "the art by Jim Lee is first rate and really wonderful to look at, but Frank Miller has stripped Batman of all of his dignity, class, and honor. This isn't the Dark Knight; this is Dirty Harry in a cowl. The worst part is that this is exactly what Batman isn't about." He added, "In one fell swoop, Miller has erased all the good he did for Batman with The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One. All of that is just gone." The book also has its defenders. Jon Morris, writing for The High Hat, named All Star Batman and Robin one of the best superhero comics of 2006, finding All Star's take on the character "an intriguing alternative take on a character long reimagined to the point of incoherence. Surely the readers as a whole have seen Batman the tortured soul, Batman the awkward father figure, Batman the authoritarian and Batman the zillion-other-paternal character archetypes countless times before under the stewardship of a few dozen other authors; why not for a scant twelve issues have a book about a Batman who might just be what a control-obsessed, Kevlar-suited sadist would be like in real life — which is to say "distinctly unpleasant"? It’s unsavory, sure, but who buys Batman comics because he’s warm and cuddly?" Notes Sources of this page: *DC Database Project *Wikipedia References * * *Matt Brady. "Dan DiDio: 20 Answers, 1 Question - 02.13.09" Newsarama February 13, 2009 *Toronto 06: Geoff Johns Talks All Star Batgirl, Newsarama, September 3, 2006 * Sanderson, Peter "Comics in Context #119: All-Star Bats", IGN, February 6, 2006 *http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=17496, Comic Book Resources *THE COMMENTARY TRACK: "Countdown: Arena" #4 w/ Keith Champagne, Comic Book Resources *Renaud; Jeffrey "All Star Morrison III: Superman", Comic Book Resources, April 17, 2008 *Tales From the Longbox review *PopMatters review *''Comics Buyers Guide'' #1636 (December 2007); Page 59. *Review by William Gatevackes, PopMatters, 10 February 2006 *Review by Iann Robinson, Crave Online *Morris, Jon, "The Year In Tights: The Best (and Worst) Superhero Comics of 2006", thehighhat.com. Retrieved October 3, 2008. *[http://www.dccomics.com/comics/?cm=9175 All Star Batman and Robin the Boy Wonder, Volume 1 details] at DC Comics External links *Jim Lee on All Star Batman, Newsarama, June 1, 2005 *Frank Miller Talks All-Star Batman & Robin the Boy Wonder, Newsarama, June 7, 2005 *Cover gallery by Jim Lee | IssueList = * * * * * * * * * * | SeeAlso = * All-Star Batman and Robin/Covers * * All Star }}